Point Cartwright Light

Point Cartwright Light
	Point Cartwright Light, 2007
Location	Point Cartwright; Queensland; Australia
Coordinates	26°40′46.94″S 153°08′18.45″E / 26.6797056°S 153.1384583°E
Tower
Constructed	1978
Construction	reinforced concrete
Automated	1978
Height	105 feet (32 m)
Shape	pentagonal tower
Markings	white tower and lantern
Power source	mains electricity
Operator	Australian Maritime Safety Authority
Light
Focal height	174 feet (53 m)
Intensity	white: 310,000 cd; red: 2,100 cd
Range	white: 23 nmi (43 km); red: 11 nmi (20 km)
Characteristic	Fl (3) WR 15s.

Point Cartwright Light is an active

point near the mouth of the Mooloolah River, in Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia. It marks the entrance to the North West Channel, a deep water channel into Moreton Bay and the Port of Brisbane

, and provides guidance into the Mooloolaba Harbour.

History

Old Caloundra Light, construction in 1896, was the first to serve the purpose of marking the entrance to the North West Channel. Changes in the shipping industry in the 1960s necessitated the construction of a modern signal and radar station, and thus New Caloundra Light was erected in 1967. However, New Caloundra Light was to have a short lifespan as a coastal light. By 1978 the buildings in Caloundra had grown in height, obscuring it from some angles.^[2]^[3]

Point Cartwright Light was built in 1978.^[1]^[4] It was the sixth of a group of seven concrete towers erected by the Commonwealth between 1964 and 1979, by order of construction, Cape Capricorn Light, New Caloundra Light, Point Danger Light, New Burnett Heads Light, Fitzroy Island Light, itself and Archer Point Light.^[2] The light was automatic from its construction and was never manned.^[3]